Tuesday, 2 July 2013

Craft Anxiety

I have a hole in my Birkenstock felt slipper.

It has been there for two weeks. As soon as I noticed it, I
decided I would cut out a little felt flower or some other cute embellishment
and stitch it onto the purple felt. It would take about half an hour.

That was two weeks ago.

The hole is still there.

I haven’t lost my creative mojo. I’m not stuck with a craft
block. Quite the opposite – I am suffering from Craft Anxiety!

Do you know the feeling? A frantic rush of colours, crafts
and creativity crowding your imagination? I have so many ideas I want to try,
so many projects to complete, so many crafts to master...most of the time all
is well and good, but every so often, when one too many projects has to be put
to the side for one reason or another, my brain goes into craft overload and I
feel a bit anxious about it all.

See all those craft books? I buy too many books. They are my
treats to me – I don’t go shopping for clothes all the time, I don’t like knickknacks,
I don’t collect trinkets, but I love page after page of inspiration in books.
(You will notice a good number of quilting books there, and I have yet to
complete my first.)

Nuts, eh? Our crafty endeavours are supposed to be a break
from the monotony of everyday life, a release of stress, a calming influence. How lovely it is
to sit still for a while and crochet. I so enjoy the satisfaction of learning
how to sew. And I am absolutely smitten with embroidery, the focused detail
that demands that I slow down, settle down, and create a delicate design on
fabric.

But sometimes I think about all of these at the same time
and eeeeeek! I need a month on my own in a secluded cabin in the woods armed
with only the contents of my craft cupboard and some decent ready meals.

I made progress on the quilt this weekend, sewing the border
to the top. I started laying out the backing fabric to sew together, knowing I
could actually finish this WIP this weekend when, out of the blue...

Bunny wanted to sew a patchwork cushion! Stop everything! How could
I say no? So away went the quilt, out came the owls. Live in the moment! We had
a delightful time.

Perhaps this blog is my regular therapy session for Craft
Anxiety – it allows me to share my WIPs with you, to sort through my ideas, and
to be inspired by your accomplishments...even if I still have 1,000 ideas
waiting to be made into reality, sharing my day-to-day thoughts and activities keeps
me grounded, or at least prevents me from going over the edge!

And just as I was finishing this post, the latest issue of Mollie Makes arrived in the letterbox. I
think the Craft Gods are telling me to stop whinging, all will be ok!

Thank you for listening; I hope you can understand my Craft
Anxiety even a teensy bit. And now, without further ado, I’m going to go find
some yarn and crochet an ice cream cone.
Then I’ll mend that hole in my slipper...

17 comments:

And b-r-e-a-t-h-e ... I'm exactly the same but I like to think that I'm storing away all these crafty bits of nonsense in my head to be put to use at a later date - hmm that's what I tell myself anyway. I'm sitting here reading all these lovely posts when I know the basket on my left is whimpering with out of favour WIP's - meanwhile I'm thinking of new crafty pastures. Oh well - it's my cross to bear ...! Jane x

Glad you can relate, Jane! I've had a thought: our children can 'inherit' our tired WIPs and finish them for us...all in the name of passing down skills to the next generation! Disguise boredom with a project with enrichment of our youth...cx

Yes I do know this feeling well! Also my husband will sometimes ask me to sew a button one shirt or patch up his biking gloves (again) and it takes me weeks to get to it! Drives him mad! You have some great looking craft books there, I love crafty books too although I haven't bought any new ones for a while. I definately think you should do a little felt flower for your slippers though! Will look so cute...M x

You made me laughs tonight as I feel like this ALL the time. I don't know which way I want to turn because something is waiting on each side all equally as important as the other and I find it really makes me feel anxious, so there you have diagnosed it all today 'CRAFT ANXIETY' and I have a severe case of it together with eating, but I am sure the fuel each other (haha!). I had such a great time looking at all your books and I feel like I have met a kindred spirit as I too get so obsessed with looking at books rather than getting much done, the problem offcourse is a double edge sword, but hey at least we have many of craft obsessed creatures out there in the same boat. It's funny I just told my other half last night that I could do with a month locked in my sewing room without kids, husband or pets, wouldn't that be bliss, well for the first two days anyway. Thanks for making me giggle!! Ps your quilt is looking great, just busy starting mine, well that has been the case for the last month anyway, haha xoxox

Dear ChrissieI totally agree with you - I think every crafter has thousands of projects in their head and sometimes it all gets a bit too much. In my experience, any creative activity is a thing that you have to do when you feel like it - it never works if you try when you're not in the mood. Just relax and enjoy crafting when you have the time and are in the mood to do it. Don't worry about the other times and remember that we're all the same and we're all with you!Best wishesEllie

Thank you, Ellie! It's comforting to know I'm not alone - and that we all want to enjoy our craft and not feel swamped! You're right, I need to follow what I fancy most at the moment, and projects will be the better for it...cxxx

Oh yes, I often have an attack of craft anxiety!! So many ideas, so little time. And as soon as I saw the front cover of that issue of Mollie Makes I thought how much I wanted to make those little ice creams for the kids too... I hope you mend your slipper soon. x

Oh this sounds familiar, or it used to, I'm more restrained these days ... if I can't knit it or dye it or maybe stitch it it will have to wait for another lifetime ... guess I'm banking on us all getting more than one!

About me

Hello! Embroidery in the hoop, yarn on the hook, thread in the machine and cookies in the oven - a typical day at my house! Life is one big WIP (Work In Progress), and I'm having fun learning so many new crafts. I hope we can share ideas and inspirations. Please leave a comment, I'd love to hear from you!